About Spring Training: Say Yes to Hess

About Spring Training:  Say Yes to Hess

By Tim Kabel

February 25, 2026

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The Yankees have started playing games in Spring Training. One by one, their top pitching prospects have been making their debuts. Elmer Rodriguez was the first, followed by Carlos Lagrange, and then Ben Hess on Monday. The Yankees seem to have a wealth of starting pitching. 

In addition to the pitchers slated to be in the starting rotation at the beginning of the season: Max Fried, Will Warren, Luis Gil, Cam Schlittler, and most likely Ryan Yarbrough, the Yankees will also have Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon returning from the IL at some point early in the season. Clarke Schmidt is also on the horizon. Add to that, Rodriguez, Lagrange, Hess, and others, and the Yankees cupboard is full, as far as starting pitchers go.

That is a wonderful thing. As the old saying goes, you can never have too much starting pitching. I am certainly not advocating that the Yankees trade any of their young pitchers. They would need to have an overwhelming opportunity to do that. For example, if they had a chance to trade for Tarik Skubal, with the understanding that he would need to sign an extension before the deal could be completed, then it would make sense to include some of the young pitchers. If it was simply a trade for a part time outfielder or pinch hitter, no thank you.

However, logic indicates that not all the Yankees ‘current starting pitchers and the prospects who are starting pitchers will be able to fit into the rotation. It is also clear that the Yankees’ bullpen could use some reinforcements. Remember, the bullpen was a bit shaky last year and although they were not perfect pitchers, the Yankees did lose Devin Williams and Luke Weaver to the Mets.

The Yankees might have a very obvious and exciting solution. On Monday, Ben Hass pitched three innings. He gave up one run on two hits and two walks. He also had five strikeouts. Hess gave up the run in his third inning of pitching. All five of the strikeouts came in his first two innings. It seems likely that since it was his first outing, he was running out of gas in that third inning. That is not unusual. In fact, it is to be expected.

The point is that Hess seems to be an ideal candidate to become a relief pitcher. I don't mean a relief pitcher like Paul Blackburn or Ryan Yarbrough. I mean someone who can come in and dominate the game in late inning situations. While it is true that the Yankees already have David Bednar to be the closer, he is only under contract for 2026. Furthermore, the Yankees could definitely use another strikeout pitcher at the end of the game.

I am not saying that Ben Hess could not remain as a starting pitcher. He certainly could. He may wind up being an excellent starting pitcher on the Major League level. However, the Yankees already have multiple pitchers who will be effective if not excellent starters. They will be getting more when Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon return. The bullpen has been an area of weakness. I'm not saying that Ben Hess could solve all their bullpen woes single handedly. He can't. No one can. However, he could certainly be a major piece toward that end. If he can be an effective late inning reliever for the Yankees, that will strengthen the bullpen and allow other pitchers to fill different roles.

At the beginning of Spring Training, none of the pitchers are throwing very many innings. If Hess continues to pitch two or three innings effectively and demonstrates that he is most effective in the earlier innings of his outings, then it would make even more sense to push him toward the bullpen.

I don't know what his career aspirations are, but I would assume that if being in the bullpen accelerated his promotion to the Major Leagues, he would be all for it.

The Yankees may have other options including Lagrange or Rodriguez or perhaps other pitchers that I haven't mentioned. The point is that Hess would seem to be a good fit for that role. Perhaps as Spring Training progresses, he will be used in more high leverage situations to see how he adapts. That would make sense. Because we are talking about a pitcher and not a position player, it seems that this could occur. In other words, Matt Blake has a stronger role in determining how pitchers will be used. He is a buffer between the pitchers and Aaron Boone.

As I have stated many times, using Blake will Boone-Proof the pitchers somewhat and may allow Hess to assume a prominent role in the Yankees’ bullpen sooner rather than later.